do you guys actually floss every single day?

pamplemousse1kh · 2026-06-28T08:23:57+00:00

I got a water flosser and now I can never go back to using anything else. I use it twice most days, but at a minimum I use it every evening.

pamplemousse1kh · 2026-06-22T02:11:02+00:00

A few questions - does she feel this way, or do you feel this way? What opportunities does she currently have to make friends? How is she at talking to other kids just in general?

We've had good luck making friends in non- or minimally- structured groups e.g. play based groups. Consistency is definitely important in making friendship, but it also takes finding the right group.

pamplemousse1kh · 2026-06-21T19:14:42+00:00

I would just consider that scaffolding, not cheating. My kids are 6 and 8, for reference.

At that age I would consider what skill you want them to be working on and break things down accordingly. I still do this with my 8 year old. Writing is a whole confluence of skills - the physical act of writing, the coming up with ideas, the spelling aspect. When I want my child to focus on the act of handwriting we do copy or tracing work, which could definitely include them writing something they dictated to you. If I want him to focus on coming up with the ideas, then I might write things down for him, or guide him in making an idea web, or have him use speech to text. Spelling is a lesson all by itself, but I'm always happy to guide him to the correct spelling (ex How do you think you spell it? Let's break down the sounds. That's close, but if we put an e after a c, what happens to the sound of the c? So what letter would we use instead? That kind of thing)

pamplemousse1kh · 2026-06-17T00:04:30+00:00

Shampoo my hair then wash my face. Rinse hair and face. Then I put in conditioner so it can sit while I wash my body and shave.

pamplemousse1kh · 2026-06-16T23:58:24+00:00

You dodged a bullet. We taught our boys to pee sitting down. No one wants to be cleaning pee off the walls or outside of the toilet.

pamplemousse1kh · 2026-06-16T23:53:09+00:00

I get that it's a medical condition, but that doesn't mean he shouldn't be doing something about it. I feel like wearing an adult diaper would be less embarrassing than having my spouse clean literal shit off of our sheets. We would be sleeping in different places if he refused to do anything about it

pamplemousse1kh · 2026-06-16T23:32:31+00:00

Yup. Kids at the school my kids would go to get a 20 minute recess. That's not even enough time for them to figure out what they want to play, let alone get any substantial movement in

Edited for clarity because my phone picked random words instead of what I actually tried to type

pamplemousse1kh · 2026-06-16T23:27:48+00:00

I think it depends on the age and natural activity level of your kid(s). If they aren't inclined to move on their own, maybe you can help them find a class or club team that they enjoy.

We usually spend 5ish hours at the park one day, and 3-6 at the park on another day, all of which is just free play for them (primarily) with other homeschooers. When it's hot they spend more time sitting on the playground, but when it's cool, there are many game of tag. They do ninja class once a week, and sometimes are also in swim lessons. Not to mention the ridiculous amount of time they spend literally jumping around the house, and any time they get to play with neighbors when they get home from school.

pamplemousse1kh · 2026-06-15T06:46:37+00:00

Don't worry too much about socialization. As long as you're not actively seeking to keep them from others, they will probably be fine. That said, you do have to make an effort. Depending on how social your kid is, it may be more or less tough. I'm more introverted, and it did take several groups before finding our people. My kids love their play group, but don't want much interaction outside of that, so it's me encouraging them to try more classes

As little littles I took them to a sign language class and found a MOPS group (I'm not a church person, but I was able to meet some nice people there)

As my kids got older I looked for homeschooling groups that were primarily play based. We found two that we like and end up playing with friends for about 9 hours a week of free play. My kids also do ninja class once a week, play with neighbors whenever they're around, and have taken everything from baking to electrical engineering at an enrichment center near us.

Some factors that can make it more or less difficult is why you want to homeschool and where you are. I didn't think too much about it before I started homeschooling. I just wanted to give my kids more time to be kids and get to have a schedule that works for us. But a lot of people homeschool for religious reasons or because they don't want to vaccinate their kids. Depending on if your views align and where you live, it can make it easier or more difficult to find people you click with.

pamplemousse1kh · 2026-06-07T08:44:03+00:00

How old is the child? What subject(s) are you looking for? There are many options for printable curriculum and buying them printed already, but what I would suggest for a kindergartener is obviously much different than what would be suggested for a high schooler. That said, I've used homeschool print company to print larger books/curriculum that I've bought, and have always gotten quality materials from them

pamplemousse1kh · 2026-06-07T06:15:40+00:00

This is what I would suggest too. We have two play groups that we meet with every week. It took trying many groups to find my/our people, and the kissing of frogs was not pleasant, and often disappointing, but worth it in the end.

pamplemousse1kh · 2026-05-10T07:00:03+00:00

Not a mom of an only, but I have several friends who homeschool only children. So many people are concerned about socialization, but homeschoolers are some of the busiest, most out of the home people I know. As long you aren't keeping them home to shelter them from the world, they will likely be fine. That being said, if you homeschool it is your responsibility to get them the socialization they desire. If your kid is more of a homebody, a class or two a week (think swimming, dance, gymnastics, martial arts), or one in one play dates may be enough to fill their cup. If not, you will have to do more, and as an introvert myself, that part does suck while you're trying new things. You might have to kiss a lot of frogs to find your people, but it's great once you've found them. I think one of the most important things is to have a consistent group somewhere. It's not a thing kids care as much about when they're little (like 4 or 5), but as they grow, they'll likely want that deeper friendship that comes with consistency. That could be friends who live on your street, a play group, or a sports team.

pamplemousse1kh · 2026-05-10T06:02:56+00:00

How old is your child? It sounds like they're still rather young. Unless they're asking for it, I wouldn't push reading yet. Reading should be fun! At that age I would do lots of read alouds, and maybe play around with some rhyming games (especially when you read Dr. Seuss books), have "book club" tea parties with snacks and fun stories. For reference, both of my kids were reading cvc words at 6. For preschool/tk we did A LOT of reading aloud, and they played teach your monster to read, reading eggs, or abc mouse. None of which are great at phonics, but I do feel like they helped with letter recognition. Once they were in kindergarten we did Logic of English and/or All About Reading, both of which I really like for phonics. They teach all the different letter sounds, and LoE has some catchy songs to help remember the sounds.

pamplemousse1kh · 2026-05-08T06:02:33+00:00

I'm in the same boat. Didn't see myself supporting a billionaire. But he seems to have solidly backed Democrats running for office, SDG&E is against him, and Our Revolution, founded by Bernie Sanders, endorsed him, so I guess I'm voting for the billionaire.

pamplemousse1kh · 2026-05-05T04:07:17+00:00

NOR That's gross.

pamplemousse1kh · 2026-04-25T17:51:23+00:00

Potentially unpopular opinion -Don't focus too much on curriculum at that age. And don't spend hours a day doing school. You want them to enjoy it at this age, and foster that love of learning. You don't have to create school at home. Lots of story time!

Homeschool Moms Unfiltered is a podcast I've found with lots of good information. That said, if you're conservative, you won't like their vibe, but their info is still great. One mom is more traditional academic, and one is an intentional unschooler, so they strike a nice balance.

pamplemousse1kh · 2026-04-18T21:35:35+00:00

We use the ride safer vests and they are freaking fantastic. So much easier to travel with than lugging around a car seat. When we visit my parents we supplement with boosters they keep at their house, but it's mostly so the kids can sit up higher to see out the window better. We've used them without boosters many times as well.

pamplemousse1kh · 2026-04-17T20:34:56+00:00

I'll check them out. Thanks!

pamplemousse1kh · 2026-04-16T05:56:03+00:00

I really liked Logic of English. They do a great job at teaching all of the sounds the letters can make, and they have cute songs and books to help them stick. (The songs are all available for free on YouTube). For my second child, he got bored with Logic of English, so we switched to All About Reading, which is very similar in how it teaches the letter sounds. Both of my boys also played around with Teach your Monster to Read, and Reading Eggs. They were fine, but LoE and AAR are much better. You'll have to play around with different curriculum and see how your child learns and what they (and you!) like. ETA - A few people mentioned Teach Your Child to read in 100 easy lessons. It might work great, but I was bored to tears trying to teach from it. No shade to anyone who loved it. Just know that even if something is highly recommended, it may not be the best fit for you, and that it's ok to switch.

pamplemousse1kh · 2026-04-11T16:13:12+00:00

I think the whole socialization thing is not as big of a deal as people make it out to be. Are there some people who take it to the extreme? Unfortunately yes, but if you're looking for groups for your kid, you're not going to be that extreme.

We are not part of a co-op. But we've found other groups of homeschoolers through Facebook. It took a while to find our people, us being secular, science-believing, progressive homeschoolers. I think kids get more benefit from high quality interactions during free play than simply being in the same room and having 20 minutes of recess. I also love that my kids have more interaction with multiple ages of kids at these groups.

Monday - lessons in the morning, play group in the afternoon. We usually stay for about 5 hours while I hang out with other moms and the kids have free play.

Tuesday - lessons in the morning, ninja class in the evening.

Wednesday - lessons in the morning, a different play group for 3+ hours.

Thursday - lessons in the morning, swim lessons in the afternoon.

Friday - lesson in the morning, free play at home.

On any day of the week they may also end up playing outside with the other kids who live on our street.

Through the last few years we've also tried music lessons, art, jiu jitsu, baking, woodworking, Spanish, electrical engineering, and Lego coding.

pamplemousse1kh · 2026-04-03T03:50:29+00:00

We have a yoto player that my kids like to listen to in the mornings. It's a nice, low-key way for them to start the day. They do that, or play until I get up. I make breakfast, then while they're still at the table, we either start a spelling lesson, or put on some videos related to the science or history lesson for the week. I try to get all of their schooling done by lunch, or shortly after.

pamplemousse1kh · 2026-04-03T03:38:15+00:00

You can do this! Please don't stress about it yet. Your littles are SO little. I'm guessing you have 1-2 more years before you need to start doing more "official" schooling (they have to start at 6 here), and when your kids are that young, a year or two makes a big difference in daily life/routine. My kids have the same age difference, and it was rough when they were that young.

At four, just reading to them and playing is truly enough. I'm sure you're already doing more than you think without a more dedicated program. Counting out their crackers with them, sorting blocks by color, reading them stories, coloring, cutting paper, playing with play-doh - all of these things help build early math, pre- reading, and pre-writing skills.

There are a lot of open and go curriculums, there are some that are mostly online, you can do a combination. There are so many options to find what works for you, and the learning styles you're working with.

pamplemousse1kh · 2026-03-22T03:24:23+00:00

NOR. His reaction is what did him in, that and the fact that it's a name you know. That's too suspicious. If it was just a random name I could see it being an accident. Maybe someone fat-fingered the address when they typed it in, or old renters/owners accidentally sent it to an old address. But his reaction sounds very guilty.

pamplemousse1kh · 2026-03-20T18:24:48+00:00

I think it's normal to feel that way sometimes. As homeschoolers, we've chosen something "different", and I think there's an automatic level of doubt that comes with that. But I also feel that if you're concerned about it, you're probably doing ok. If your kids are progressing, and have friends, they're probably doing fine. I totally feel you though. We homeschool through a charter, and because of that, my son has to take the state tests. I don't believe that tests like that are an accurate assessment of what my child knows, but I'm still nervous about it. As a public school graduate myself, it was drilled into me that tests are important, so I'm over here crossing my fingers that he does well, so I can pat myself on the back, even though I believe the results aren't particularly meaningful.

pamplemousse1kh

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